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Counterstrike
The outskirts of Magnaron. A few cycles ago, Shockwave launched an assault on the Autobot fortifications here. Insecticons chewed through the durasteel bunkers with ease, as Shockwave encountered Sky Lynx in a ferocious scrapfest. Most of the debris for the area has been cleaned up, fortifications have been renewed as best they can, the frontline even managed to be sprayed down with some sort of chemical treatment to discourage the chewing foes. Altercations between the two forces dissolved into a series of small skirmishes, potshots and general stall tactics as front lines and supply lines shift. For the trained soldier, this is the true face of war, endless tedium broken up with moments of death and confusion. EARLIER FOR THE AUTOBOTS Elita One gestures to the map outside Magnaron, "Intelligence is working with the military operation forces in this area to help alleviate pressure on the front. To do so however, we will be needing to stage an assault to focus Con presence here first. Then and only then, can we proceed to our next stage. She gestures to two large gumbies off to the side, both of which carrying melee implements and large shields. "Blastplate and Frontliner will be the point of the spear for the assault." One of the identical titans slams his shield before him, a full seven inches of ship's hull, "You can count on us to take care of these guys!" Blastplate pipes up, "Lookin forward to crushin some Con faces!" Elita One looks back to the other assembled masses, "We'll lighten up the Decepticon forces with a few mortar blasts, then withdraw the heavy artillery before the confrontation, we do not want Con forces to destroy or capture any weaponry I've put together. Keep that in mind. Intelligence does have an objective here, as well, just leave that to us." She gestures to the shuttle-beast Sky Lynx, "Sky, you've got Operational control here. Know that Intel'll be pulling back after the objective is sound. We don't need to risk more lives than needed." Sky Lynx nods curtly. Repaired, but still bearing some scarring from the Predaking encounter. He studies over the map, then towards the forces dedicated to the diversionary onslaught... "Of course. That is a simple matter. Hopefully we inflict enough casualties to actually make them hurt while we are at it. Though, I do hope there is a contingency for the potential appearance of that monstrosity." Lynx leaves it at that. Elita One's already stated the undesired excess of costs in regards to the matter at hand. "Just act swiftly and we shall do much the same on our end. Primary targets, leadership and artillery. Both will alleviate pressure on our lines with the added benefit, in regards to the leadership, of aiding in confusion. Supply depots take second priority, heavy weaponry as required. Avoid small, nonsensical skirmishing." Among all the hustle and bustle, Red Alert is here; after a fashion. Remaining momentarily quiet for now, which is strange considering the Autobot conspiracy theorist, he drops off a load of munitions to the appropriate place before transforming. Making his way towards Elita One, Sky Lynx, and the others assembled; a curd nod of his chin is given while he takes in the surroundings. "Nothing on scanners so far 'Lita." he speaks somberly, an almost bitter tart-voice coming from his synth. Elita One says, "Don't you worry, Red. We'll give them something to talk about soon enough" Red Alert has encrypted this channel. Shockwave lands at the Decepticon barricades, just behind where snipers and artillerymechs are firing off into the distance. He marches up to the squadron leader, who's a tall Seeker with a head that looks vaguely like he's wearing a beret--it is, in fact, the source of his name. Beret salutes, "Sir." Shockwave glances out beyond the barricades to where, waaaay off in the distance, the Autobot lines can also be seen. At this range, and with both sides hunkered down, it's tough for anyone to hit each other. "Report, Lieutenant." Beret's robotic moustache twitches as he points outwards. "Our lines are holding, sir. All other squadrons report that their position is stable, but nobody's been able to make any ground for the past week. I dare say, we may have reached a stalemate. I suppose we'll have to tough it out, hrm?" Shockwave doesn't answer just yet, instead analyzing the Autobot lines from afar. He can't make out the individual Transformers over there, but he knows they're plotting. Then, finally, he states: "A stalemate is a victory for us, Lieutenant. Predaking needs only another week to finish flushing out any Autobot emplacements within our territory. Without the proper logistical support, their efforts to keep the Resistance supplied will fail." Red Alert sends a text across the Autobot broadband: Attention! Temporary channel labeled has been added for mission. Windshear has been running perimeter patrols with the Harrison Squad for some cycles now. Between runs hes been training them, honing the team to function as one well oiled machine. But this stalemate is getting tedious and boring to be honest. The Seekers are getting restless and Windshear himself has about had enough of the 'quite' himself. <"Shockwave."> he transmits on tight beam, <"Its too quiet. I think this lull is being used to their advantage somehow. Myself and my squad are ready for any orders to break this, sir."> Spinister drops down behind Shockwave, transforming into his robot mode and touching down on two feet. Singe and Hairsplitter detach from his wings, changing from powerful weapons into two small armored people with the ability to become powerful weapons again if needed! Hairsplitter hurries to catch up with Shockwave, having been designated his note taker and analyst. The Neb worked for Shockwave almost as much as he did for Spinister, which suited the DJD Agent just fine: not many Decepticons could say that they had as strong an ear on Shockwave as he did. Singe, who rarely had a practical purpose if not burning someone to death or tricking females into thinking he was interested in them romantically as a tool for information gathering, set about doing what he did best: finding Beret's aid, a female mech named Quickspike, and chatting her up about her color scheme. The best way to judge a commanding officer's honesty is through his assistants, after all. Commotion brews in the Autobot fortification, Two large prong shaped artillery platforms raise their heavy angular forms, and start to spin, then start to glow. Elita One stands at the front fortification, surveying the Decepticons own. "I see Shockwave, he's on site. Let's hope his pet monster isn't, I need some time to build another Scrambler..." Titan class Gumbies start assembling at the front lines, heavy shields and hammers in hands, tightly knit together. Great for snipers and concentrated fire, not so good against mortar fire. "Sky Lynx, artillery is ready. Proceeding. Bots, show them we mean to take back the planet, this is for Cybertron and for all who dwell upon it." She raises her hand forward dramatically. "Till all are one!" Purple mortar fire launches into the sky. The two balls of plasma slowly arc towards the Decepticon lines. In the background, The two mortars already start the transformation to transport mode as they move to withdraw. The heavily armored Titan squad bursts out of Bot trenches with a rallying cry as the masses start the rush to engage, as the battle is joined. Elita One leaps off the fortification wall, following the spear's tip, her cannon at the ready for the chaos that will surely follow. Combat: Pink Techcar inspires Sky Lynx, Bug Creature , and Red Alert with uplifting and noble words! The futuristic car breaks open in the middle, as the legs form upward. Her hood shifts into her armor plating with her arms coming together at the last, turning into Elita One's robot mode. Solo stands behind Windshear, the leader of Harrison Squad. Well, most interesting of the uninteresting lot is more apt a title than leader. See, in Seeker School; you fail upwards. "Sir, I think it wise to inform Commander Shockwave that I can make it between us and the Autobots in twelve parsecs." What's a parsec? The world may never know, but you'll spot a terrible Han ripoff when you see one. Sky Lynx waits for the initial volley from the artillery cannons before his engines kick in and he's off like a ...well...uh, Sky Lynx. "On me, Autobots! The time to enact payback on the Decepticon forces is now!" He truly does not wait, though, for the rest of the ground forces. Rather, he lets the first wave of artillery soften up the target before following through with a strafing run of fire to draw attention skywards and away from the charge. "If it gets too hot for you Decepticlowns, by all means feel free to leave! I can chase you down another day." "Real inspiring," someone sneers from behind Elita. And of course, it's the Autobot nobody wanted, Repugnus, in creature mode! "I just hope that you don't inspire the troops TOO much if you take my meaning. If there's one thing the Autobots have too many of, it's heroes." He shuffles about, waving his claws about. "Mmmm, gotta love the smell of plasma. It smells like victory! That or a massacre." While not a frontline combatant, Red Alert is more than capable of taking care of himself; especially after such an inspiring speech and display of heroism. Then Sky Lynx rolls in and raises the bar exponentially. Red Alert is out of his element, but it looks like he's going to make the best of it. Charging forward, he flips open his datapad and starts to run some distraction on the local Decepticon channels. They'd notice certain functions of personal radios and direct broadband to be unreliable, static, or a bombardment of KNUJ. There's a reason they say the pen is mightier than the sword, Red Alert may have injured their audio receptors more than any blaster could have. Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected. <> Shockwave replies to Windshear, considering. He patches Beret, Spinister, and Hairsplitter into the conversation as well. <> th KA-BOOM!! The emplacement is suddenly covered in plasma. Someone--likely Beret given the French accent--shouts, "Get down!" and Decepticons are suddenly diving for cover. They know their training and how to handle plasma bombs, but this is the first one that scored a direct hit on their position. Not far off, the second bomb slams into the wall, melting a hole in it. Shockwave rises from behind the barricade, having survived the initial assault. <> but he's cut off by the squeal of radio interference. Forced to duck again to avoid Sky Lynx's strafing run, Shockwave makes sure he's behind a sturdy section of the barricade before cutting loose with an arm cannon blast towards the Autobot in the lead of the charge. Combat: Shockwave sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Shockwave strikes Elita One with his Laser attack! Combat: Shockwave (Shockwave) used "Laser": A Level 2 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 11 damage. Indy cranes his neck towards the frontline, staggering backwards once the incoming artillery lands and the rush of Autobots become apparent. "Might want to revise that to three parsecs, Solo." he gruffs, slumping back against the embankment. Solo, still staring out unflinching as the Autobots scurry in like a tide of ants amassing over an intruder, replies "How do you figure?" Mounting the wall and rushing out, Indy only calls over his shoulder in reply. "I don't know, I'm making this up as I go!" Windshear waits for Shockwaves reply and hears Solo's comment instead as the mech walks up. The Dark Seeker slowly pivots to look the other flier in the optics. A wing twitches slightly, more like a tic that seems to be a normal site since hes been working wtih the Harrison Squad. "Do.. you even know what 'parsecs' are, Solo?" The Commanders comment comes through then and then suddenly the Plasma bomb spiders over every thing. He dives for cover hoping Solo followed suit. As the Zombie Seeker hears the second bomb go off he hears Shockwave continue onhis radio but then suddenly his entire Manson MP3 collection blasts through his audios. Stunned for a second before Windshear can makes sense of it the music dies off and nothing but static fills his radio frequncies. He shakes his head and looks at Solo and calls out. "SEEKERS, TRANSFORM FOLLOW ME!" he jumps up and snaps into Tetrajet mode heading for the Bots strong hold. Spinister takes a slight step to the left as an Autobot artillery blast explodes a Con aerial transport in the sky overhead, the back end of the massive vehicle plummeting out of the sky, crashing beside him. Singe and Hairsplitter both snap their attention from assignments back to Spinister suddenly, and hit their antigravs. Transforming into helicopter mode, he meets them halfway, weapons clicking into place. Smoke grenades and foggers are covering the battlefield, obscuring frontline vision- a standard Decepticon defense tactic. Spinister heads for the thickest of the clouds and vanishes. Spinister transforms into an Apache Attack Helicopter! A MYSTERIOUS ATTACK HELICOPTER! Windshear transforms into a dead black McDonnell Douglas F15A. Spinister unfolds into his (terribly) mysterious robot mode! Also: Singe! Hairsplitter! Combat: Spinister is no longer apparent in view! F-15 Streak Eagle takes the lead for the squadren and heads straight for the first Autobot his scanners pick up: Red Alert Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle strikes Red Alert with his Laser attack! Elita One trucks along behind Blastplate and Frontliner. Sniper fire pings and bounces off the impressive shielding as the group of titans make their rush into melee, the small elite cadre breaks off into smaller teams. Elita One, surveying the situation, takes stray fire in the shoulder. She immediately ducks for minimal cover as she surveys the area. There, behind a barricade, is her nemesis, the barrel of his weaponarm still smoking. That yellow gaze upon her, it is clear who took the shot. She glances up to Sky Lynx, then continues her approach into enemy lines, her cannon roaring into targets of opprotunity. A microcycle goes by. <> Laser fire bounces within the area, striking just at her feet. She manages a great leap behind one of the smaller fortifications, landing with her knees upon one of the Con footsoldiers, then fires another gout of plasma, this time aimed at Big Purple himself, Shockwave. Combat: Elita One sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with her Plasma Cannon attack! -4 Combat: Gained 1 energon. Sky Lynx frowns. How has he not managed to draw the ire of all of the Decepticons? Ah well, that just means more fun for him unhindered. He snaps his wings into a tight roll and buzzes the trenches once more, though there's no longer any sign of drawing attacks...that's already been done. No, he's something else in his optics. The one-eyed purple people eater's top priority, especially since Shockwave's opted to fling fire towards Elita One. <> Sky Lynx decides it best to get the Commander's attention. "Over here, Villainous slime! We've some unfinished business to attend to!" He lashes out at Shox with his tail in passing, offering up only the most taunting of laughs while doing so. Combat: Sky Lynx misses Shockwave with his Tailswipe (Kick) attack! Bug Creature snickers to himself. Elita is so easy to rile up. She could turn violent on him with any stray comment, of course, so there's a bit of risk, but the entertainment is worth it. But, he has no more time to amuse himself as he drops down into No-Man's Land. And it turns out that laying down all that smoke isn't effective against EVERY Autobot--Repugnus waddles off into it, perfectly content to use it as cover. And of course, his bulbous eyes can see just fine in the smoke. It occurs to him that some of the Decepticons might also be lurking in the smoke. After all, they laid it down, didn't they? Repugnus begins waving his claws around to sniff for mech fluid, and scanning the smoke for anything out of the ordinary. His X-Ray vision easily penetrates the smoke, but can he find Spinister within it? Fusillade arrives from the Retoris to the east. Fusillade has arrived. Combat: Bug Creature searches for Spinister. Combat: Spinister has been found! Making a last minute adjustment to the jamming signal, Red Alert is caught off guard when a laser shot bores a hole in his left shoulder. The attack spins him around in a small semi-circle, almost sending him completely off balance; if not for the timely intervention and help of one of the titan-class gumbies. "My thanks, Leviathan." he denotes, before trying to pick the Seeker out of the ranks. Once he gets a bead on him, Red Alert takes careful aim and attempts to zero in on the fuselage. "Come to pappa." Combat: Red Alert takes extra time to aim his next attack. The jamming signal in the area disperses. As Solo and Indy charge headstrong to their likely demise, Fugitive rests uneasily on the embankment. You see, this Decepticon Seeker isn't really a Seeker at all. Underneath the minor alterations made to his frame, 'Fugitive' is really one of the Cybertronians evading the Decepticon Justice Division. Formerly a talented doctor, Kimblron was accused of murdering his medical assistant. So where else to hide, but in plain sight? With a shrug of his shoulders, Fugitive leaps the embankment as well and takes to the fight. If he can employ his expertise without anyone being the wiser, he will. Spinister swoops out of the smokescreen and opens fire on Smokescreen, who is moving a unit of Autobots towards a possible flanking position. The Autobots attempt to Scatter, but are caught up in a wall of flames that Singe circles around the group. Shockwave didn't even realize it was Elita One until after he shot her. His vision was still tinted purple from the plasma bomb the Autobots had dropped on their heads. The femme manages a great leap that takes her up onto the barricades, whereupon she immediately confronts and blasts Shockwave. This time the plasma glances off his chest armour. Before he can retaliate, however, Sky Lynx is diving down upon him. He's displayed his toughness, and now he must display his agility. He does so by jumping away into the air just before the tail can strike him. Instead the entire section of wall comes crumbling down from the impact, but fortunately Shockwave is not there. "I had calculated a 72.8% chance the Autobots would be able to muster an attack of this nature three days ago," Shockwave intones, jet boosts keeping him in the air. "You have failed to meet my expectations." Knowing just how dangerous Elita One is, Shockwave fires down at both Autobots. This may draw unwanted attention his way, but it'll give Beret's team time to regroup and mount a concentrated defence. Combat: Shockwave misses Sky Lynx with his Laser Spray (Full-Auto) Area attack! Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his Laser Spray (Full-Auto) Area attack! Combat: Shockwave (Shockwave) used "Full-Auto": A Level 2 AREA-RANGED attack. Boomslang has arrived. F-15 Streak Eagle veers away after his shot on Red Alert lands. <"Split up into yoru assigned trines, coverfire, formation Gamm4."> then he notices Fugative, <"Coward."> he says, <"Jetblast, Razorwing, compensate for your teammembers cowardice!"> The Dark seeker focuses for a target lock on Skylynx. Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle misses Sky Lynx with his Thermal Laser attack! -3 And not a moment too soon. As the jamming signal dissipates, the alert propagates from local frequencies to broadband, and Decepticon reinforcements begin to arrive. Among them is a heavy weapons interdiction unit in the form of one very heavily modified B-1 Lancer, escort package formed up tight on her slipstream. Fusillade emits, <> Sky Lynx finds his immediate air space suddenly quite crowded, first with Windshear's weaponsfire, and then Fusillade's own considerably larger, curvier airframe cutting him off like it was rush hour in Cuprahex. <> Which is then promptly followed up by laserfire as way of greeting. Combat: Space Going B-1R Lancer sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Space Going B-1R Lancer strikes Sky Lynx with her Nose-Mounted Laser (Laser) attack! You send a radio message to Red Alert: Red Alert, want to take our anti-air out for a spin? You receive a radio message from Red Alert: Give the word, I won't turn down free firepower. F/A-18 Super Hornet dips towards the surface from the strike package, skimming low across the surface to strafe the Autobot ranks! "Taking targets of opportunity," he transmits back to the wing leader, bracketing a particularly garish-looking one with autocannon fire. Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet strikes Bug Creature with his Autocannon (Pistol) attack! Harrison Squadron meets the Titan class brawlers in a clash of metal and pain. Hammers crush the unlucky Seekers caught on the ground. Clear Danger takes one to the head, sending him to the ground where he is simply stepped on as Decker is bullrushed into the compatriots behind him. The battle turns toward Harrison Squadron as the Seekers take to the air, out of range of the heavy shocktroopers. One, appropriately named, Shocktrooper reports <> Elita One darts into the mess of Titans, who cleverly freed up the path to her secret objective, by engaging in heavy melee. She calls out on the private channel, <> A vehicle roars to life, hidden under tarps and anti-screening mesh. A mobile platform from early-war era, hover-capable with a long barrel. Powerful in single use, devastating for anti-air usage, the Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon rolls in, its signature Kra-THOOM sound forcing several veterans to remember days long long gone. Packer, the short stout gumby with a square head leaps out of the vehicle as it rolls up towards Red Alert. "All yours! Don't scratch it!" Elita One shows a great deal of restraint as she diverts from the main battlefront, slipping into cover from above. A datapad appears in her hands, "It can't be far now..." A pipeline is noticed before her. "Ahhh, there we go..." Combat: Elita One takes extra time to steady herself. Pass Combat: Regained 6 energon. Bug Creature picks up on Spinister's scent, silently and gleefully tracking him through the smoke, and when he bursts forth from it, Repugnus realizes he only has a moment to try and slash before the Decepticon flits away. And so Repugnus leaps up out of the smoke, claw extended, trying to stab into the Decepticon's ankle. Whether he hits or not, he lands back down on the battlefield, and it's then he realizes that his cover is fading away. "Aw, slag," he grumbles as laser blasts begin to hit him from above. "You freaking Decepticons, always flying around! Come on down to the ground and fight like a real mechanism! I don't bite! Okay, that's a lie, but come on!" Sky Lynx has a bit of an agility streak on him as well, and for as large as he is...it's nothing a quick barrel roll can't solve. There's an all too boisterous laugh on his part as Shockwave's errant shots zip past him ineffectually. Oooh, there's another laser in there as well? Lynx glances back at Windshear briefly. But, priorities. He winks, or at least half of his optical visor flickers out briefly. Though, that could also be due to Fusillade's laser attack. He chuckles in response and pointedly ignores her. "Can't hit a target right in front of you? Hah! I thought better of you all! Here, let me make things a bit less one-sided for you!" He lands, interjecting himself between Shockwave and Elita One, stepping in to deliver a hefty backhand. "Come at me! I dare you all!" Speaking of all, how many are there? He scans the area. <> Combat: Sky Lynx sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Sky Lynx strikes Shockwave with his Dragon Claw attack! Combat: Bug Creature sets his defense level to Aggressive. You drop Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon. Combat: Bug Creature strikes Spinister with his Shearing Claws attack! -2 His careful aim moving along with his target, Red Alert's trigger finger is only interrupted by an incoming blast that completely shatters the top scope. A quick jerk of his head sidelong, the Autobot's sights are set on Indy; the likely culprit of the break in his concentration. Before Red Alert can even make a play for his side holster to return fire, Leviathan steps in. Raking his heavy shield against the ground low, the titan-class gumbie makes a charge at the Seeker gumbie. Much like a train smashing into a car on the tracks, the Seeker Indy is jostled silly when smashed into. His decapitated head, from impact alone, is sent rolling towards his comrades. Then Elita One's announcement comes in, Red Alert happy to oblige. Though not in the way she might have hoped. Lining up behind Leviathan, "You lead the charge big-mech, I'll paint the targets!" he orders, the two going on a literal demolition derby of the battlefield while gaining some targetting information. When Packer rolls up, Red Alert gives a brief salute and retort. "I'm forwarding tactical targetting data to your systems, make sure those shots count soldiers!" Not a moment's hesitation is lost, Tripwire jumps back into the cockpit and alligns the armament with the data. "FOUR!" Combat: Red Alert misses F-15 Streak Eagle with Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon's Vanguard Fly-Swatter attack! Spinister spots Repugnus at the last moment, too late to avoid having his ankle good and thrashed by the creatures claws. "I *hate* that thing. Do the Autobots love humans so much they've started taking alt modes based on their iller anal evacuations?" Singe makes a face, nose up. "Still, perhaps he'll light up like one, too..." Spinister adjusts, turning in midair, pointing Singe at Repugnus as he falls back to the ground. And then, there's lots of fire! Combat: Spinister strikes Bug Creature with his Flamethrower attack! Shockwave looks up towards the horizon as the jamming field clears. He's picked up additional transponder signals, and the owner of those is going to make things very different. "You have ill timed this attack," Shockwave notes, watching with clear satisfaction as Fusillade announces her presence by taunting and blasting Sky Lynx. Unfortunately it does not deter Sky Lynx from sticking to him, and he's swatted out of the sky with the powerful backclaw of justice. The Military Operations mech goes crashing into the now mostly slagged remnants of the Decepticon barricade. Picking himself up, Shockwave takes aim at Sky Lynx. "Still focusing on me despite Fusillade's ambush, Sky Lynx? How il...log...i..." Shockwave trails off as he realizes what he's saying. He turns left and right. Elita One. Where is Elita One?! He spies a hint of pink as it vanishes into cover. <> Shockwave instead charges into the pipe that Elita One vanished into. His heavy footsteps cause a powerful echo to ripple through it. THOOM, THOOM, THOOM, THOOM. There can be no disgusing that he is after her, and soon laser bolts are flying after her. Combat: Shockwave sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his Pursuing Shots attack! -2 Combat: Shockwave (Shockwave) used "Irradiate": A Level 4 RANGED attack. F-15 Streak Eagle watches another part of the Harrison Squadren take full on damage. Not what he intended but they are giving the rest time to attack by preoccupying these huge mechs. But suddenly hes the target and flinging over a wing hard the F15Streak Eagle lives up to his name and reputation breifly as it evades the blast with near impossible speed. <"Shockwave."> Windshear says as he levels back out <"Heavy damage to the Squadren -- the Autobots have indeed taken this stalemate to make it a challenge to say the least."> he attempts to close in on Sky Lynx and fire again. Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle strikes Sky Lynx with his Thermal Laser attack! -3 Space Going B-1R Lancer 's flight path is straight for a moment as Fusillade evaluates Shockwave's condition, making plans to divvy up her attention between the exciting piece of war antiquity just revealed to her -- <> -- versus Sky Lynx. And then the implacable lord of fusion speaks. <> She peels away in a windup turn, bleeding off speed and altitude as she snaps open her glossy white belly flaps, and slings out a missile easily the size of a mini-bot at the Autobot. One might be able glimpse text on the shark-faced munition stating, "What, you can read?!" as it sails toward Sky Lynx. Combat: Space Going B-1R Lancer strikes Sky Lynx with her Double Tacit Rainbow attack! F/A-18 Super Hornet breaks off the attack run, rolling away from Repugnus to take a look at the Autobot surprise. He thought those reports sounded familiar. "Looks like they didn't forget to bring a gun to the gunfight after all," he sends, strafing the anti-aircraft artillery briefly as his nose crosses its bearing. "Triple-A, grid D6, be mindful." Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet strikes Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon with his Autocannon (Pistol) attack! <> Fusillade jabbers on local radio at Boomslang. Bug Creature shrinks back from the flames, trying to hold up his stubby arms to shield himself. Of course, this leaves his arms more scorched than the rest of him. "Agggh, now Spinister, that's the sweetest compliment a Decepticon's ever given me!" He catches something on his radio, and turns to the pipe Elita is running into... and which Shockwave is following her through. "Hmmmm. Yeah, well, you go ahead and burn some other Autobots, 'kay?" He shuffles away from the mysterious Decepticon, hoping that he finds some other target to set on fire. Repugnus has a serious situation to deal with! Hustling after Shockwave, Repugnus stops at the mouth of the pipe, spotting Shockwave somewhere down its length. And that's when he employs a classic under-handed trick of his. Quietly clearing his throat, Repugnus does his best impression of a loyal Decepticon trooper's voice (or at least how he imagines it) as he says, "Shockwave, look out behind you!" Now, of course, Shockwave might realize the voice doesn't sound like anyone he knows, and not turn around, or he might turn around anyway to see what it really is. In any event, if he DOES turn around, he's going to get a face full of stroboscopic light that will leave him temporarily blinded and disoriented! Combat: Bug Creature sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Bug Creature strikes Shockwave with his Stroboscopic Eyes attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Shockwave's Accuracy. (Blinded) Elita One slams her security spike into the conduit, where it promptly is absorbed and dissipates. <> Moments later an irradiating blast misses her by only a few feet, she raises her head at Shockwave's approach, then ducks back down. "Persistent" she mutters. Surely someone was going to check out what she was doing here, which is why before she confronts her nemesis again, she slides a detpack up against the conduit. It was a flimsy excuse for a sabotage run, but the screen hadn't worked, and at least it'd be harder to conject what she was really up to... She turns to regard him, with Repugnus' shadow behind him as well. <> Taking advantage of the blinding maneuver, Elita One sprints towards Shockwave, just to bowl him over on the way out. <> The remaining Titan class bots turtle up their shields to protect from air targets as they start their withdrawal, working as a well coordinated team, though less in numbers. When the first volley misses its mark, Red Alert peels back to the Vanguard-Class Cannon and rips open the hatch. "Tripwire, reallign and take aim on all aerial targets." he barks at the pilot. "But sir, you know just as well as me that bird ain't gonna fly!" Pausing in his movement, Red Alert afixes his gaze on the gumbie Autobot. "You've leave that to me, just stow the chatter and do as you're ordered!" A solemn nod follows from Tripwire, as the Security Director makes his way to the rear compartment. Manually opening the cannon's load bay, Red Alert takes out the ordinance and quickly begins tearing it apart. The reason these old vehicles were put to pasture is their lack of multiple targetting capabilities. They simply could not keep up with multiple targets, so before they were all destroyed by being outclassed; they were retired. Now that the brief history lesson is over, we return to Red Alert in the rear of the Vanguard-Class Cannon. Installing the last piece of what he's coined the 'cluster flash', Red Alert slams the door closed and returns to the front of the vehicle. "Tripwire, triangulate on the positions and fire at the center.." he trails, linking his own datapad into the vehicles; adding additional commands for the munition itself. Once complete, the paranoid android shouts "FIRE!" Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Red Alert strikes Space Going B-1R Lancer with his Jury-Rigged Cluster Flash Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily limited Space Going B-1R Lancer's Agility! (Crippled) Combat: Red Alert misses F/A-18 Super Hornet with his Jury-Rigged Cluster Flash Area attack! Combat: Red Alert strikes F-15 Streak Eagle with his Jury-Rigged Cluster Flash Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily limited F-15 Streak Eagle's Agility! (Crippled) F/A-18 Super Hornet grumbles something about mission parameters and takes a moment to think about how he might get Red Alert out of the flak gun's driver's seat without damaging the gun too much. Boomslang can't sneak up on him, of course, he'd detect him for sure with that flashy head-thing of his. Red Alert's already dialed in on him with that thing, cluster munitions bursting across the sky! And if he spends too much time on the ground, he'll be liable to get jumped by the likes of Repugnus. "Smokin' 'em out," Boomslang transmits to the rest of the strike wing, warning them to get clear as he comes around a ruined building and lines up on the gun with one of his firebombs. Space Going B-1R Lancer's tail is indeed broad, the 36 foot span of its tailslabs presenting prime real estate for Sky Lynx to roast!! The magnesium-intense flame burns viciously, fusing together gaskets and prompting protest from several systems, and causing the bomber to yowl as she wrenches away from her flight path using thrust-vectoring exhausts. She retorts, <> Fusillade transformers to robot mode to steady herself upon double-thrustered heels. The turquoise, scarlet, and white bulk of Sky Lynx swooshes by, and Fusillade dims glittering saffron optics on Sky Lynx, before slinging out a sizzling gout of plasma toward him -- this time, cyan-hued, unlike that released earlier by Elita. Even as she focuses on the boastful Autobot, Red Alert nails the Decepticon forces, and she wobbles again mid-air. "Uffff, that'd better not be the only thing it does, that'll affect the resale value." The sleek bomber rears up, wings collapsing onto hips even as the rear fuselage splits to form arms. The horizontal stabilizer slides up, the forward fuselage folds up accordian style, and Fusillade hops up on thrustered feet. Combat: Fusillade strikes Sky Lynx with her Plasma Caster attack! Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet strikes Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon with his Mk.77 Incendiary Bomb Area attack! Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet misses Red Alert with his Mk.77 Incendiary Bomb Area attack! Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet misses Elita One with his Mk.77 Incendiary Bomb Area attack! Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet (Boomslang) used "Mk.77 Incendiary Bomb": A Level 6 AREA-RANGED attack. <> Shockwave replies to Windshear. While stopping whatever the femme terrorist is planning is paramount, Shockwave knows he cannot effectively command the battle from here. That's another good reason to have Fusillade up there. THOOM, THOOM, THOOM! Shockwave continues to stomp after her, firing laser bolts the whole way. Then, he hears a not-so-familiar shout behind him. Far from discouraged, Shockwave considers this as proof that Elita One's mission is critical. Glancing behind him to confirm his suspicions, Shockwave is on the receiving end of a terrible light blast his optic cannot compensate for. Ultimately it is no matter. Elita One has already set up a detpack and is fleeing past him. Shoved rudely against the wall, Shockwave reaches out to try and snag Elita One by her neck, holding her tightly. It's a risky thing given the fuzziness that's impairing his eye-sight. What happens next depends on if he's successful. If he grabs her, Shockwave will stay where he is, holding the femme straight up and in the path of the inevitable. If he fails and Elita One slips past, then he has little choice but to flee down the same pipe she is in order to escape the blast. Combat: Shockwave sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Shockwave misses Elita One with his A Man Scorned attack! Combat: Shockwave (Shockwave) used "Red Right Hand": A Level 6 MELEE attack. F-15 Streak Eagle pulls away from his shot on Sky Lynx just in time to go right into the path of Red Alerts ordered attack. The Eagle falters in the sky. <"Harrison Squadren, There your target!"> he orders bursting Red Alerts location. Then in a last ditch attemp the Dark Seeker takes a short toward the Autobot. Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle strikes Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon with his Laser attack! How fortunate, Windshear's been scared off. Hah! Sky Lynx turns his full attention to Fusillade as he gets a face full of transformed Lancer and a blast of plasma. He's quick enough to avoid getting struck in the face, but the wing is what takes the brunt of it, fusing some of the more delicate controls in place. <> He smirks, since Fusillade's transformation has provided quite the tantilizing target, accelerating up to speed to charge at her full-on, the disruptor cannon mounted on the side of his neck firing off a quick blast. "You don't belong in the sky, I'm afraid." Combat: Sky Lynx strikes Fusillade with his EMP Blast (Disruptor) attack! Elita One narrowly darts off to the side of Shockwave's lunge. Even with his optics blinded, there were plenty of other sensors on the mech. <> When Elita One climbs back to the main road, she is greeted by the explosion of a large airburst weapon. The flames roll up to within feet of her, her hands up over her face as she instinctively flinches away. Gauging the area, with napalm before her, and Shockwave soon to be coming up the rear, Elita dives into the flames after a moment's thought. She comes through on the other side, smoking and glowing from the heat. She leaps forwards into her vehicle mode, taking off back to the fortifications. Combat: Elita One damages herself. Combat: You took 5 damage. Elita One moves to kneel, her breastplate swings up on both sides, her arms retract, slipping behind her as she sinks down. A windshield rises up at the end, covering her face as she turns into a futuristic car. Bug Creature cackles as, one way or the other, Shockwave falls for his ruse and winds up blindly fumbling for his nemesis. He hears the command to run, and turns to do so, but then something occurs to him. Shockwave's still in the tunnel. And what better way to pay the cyclops back for all the thrashings he's given the Monsterbot by sealing Shockwave up inside that tunnel? Transforming into robot mode, Repugnus says, "You know, Shockwave, this pipe looks like a good place... to bury you!" And he whips out his Venom Laser and tries to stun Shockwave, leaving him at the mercy of Elita's explosives! "Byeeee!" The creature spins and twists about into Repugnus's robot mode! Combat: Repugnus strikes Shockwave with his Venom Laser attack! Combat: Shockwave has been temporarily incapacitated. Krrt-ZZZZT! The electromagnetic burp washes over Fusillade's hardened systems, and with a bare shudder, she speaks; "Fine, I'll humor you," Fusillade remarks, plunking down on pile of wreckage freshly upturned by the numerous detonations. Squinching up her face in concentration, she pins herself against a gnarled sheet of plasteel, pulling out her nickel-plated robo-Desert Eagle from her thigh dispenser, and with a cruel smirk across her hematite lips, fires at the braggart. Combat: Fusillade strikes Sky Lynx with her BLAU! (Laser) attack! F-15 Streak Eagle realizes most of his squad is down. He orders the ones remaining to retrieve the ones that are down and do a fighting retreat and he concentrates on trying ot take out the Anti-air cannon. Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle strikes Vanguard-Class Anti-Air Cannon with his Thermal Laser attack! With the combined bombardment of Boomslang's volley and Windshear's, the collossal vehicle begins to smelt in spots; noticable to the occupants inside the craft. Ordering the other two occupants out the hatch, Red Alert manages to set a demolition charge on the console before following as well. If Red Alert can't have his toy, he'll be damned if another Decepticon does! Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Red Alert takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Shockwave is unable to grasp Elita due to his damaged optic-sight. To make matters worse, Repugnus blasts him with his venom laser, leaving Shockwave stunned and slowed, trudging along at a snail's pace down the pipe. It is similar to when one runs down a hallway to outpace a fireball, except in this case it is in super-slow motion. F/A-18 Super Hornet climbs away from the bombing run and banks into a turn to look down at his handiwork. He's lost track of Elita among the flames, and Repugnus as well. Too bad for Fusillade the AA gun is no longer mint-in-box. Tough to find anything in all that smoke. On the other hand, he's also lost sight of Shockwave, who is normally not exactly easy to lose. "What's the gouge on the commander?" he transmits, as he dives back towards Red Alert, raking his position with 20-mil. "Lost visual on him." Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet misses Red Alert with his Autocannon (Pistol) attack! Pink Techcar roars down the main stretch towards the Autobot fortifications, giving the Cannon a wide berth, "If you insist, Red. Repugnus, that bomb's about to..." Fire erupts from the pipeline, shotgunning out a small torrent of flame with the explosion. Not an enormous blast, but still enough to do some good damage. She transforms back into Bot mode, during the sprint to the fortification, what with all the incoming fire and all, its easier to find cover as such The futuristic car breaks open in the middle, as the legs form upward. Her hood shifts into her armor plating with her arms coming together at the last, turning into Elita One's robot mode. Combat: Elita One has created a grenade: "Gratuitious_Sabotage"! Combat: Elita One strikes Repugnus with Gratuitious_Sabotage's Small Explosion #11150 Area attack! Combat: Elita One's Gratuitious_Sabotage is destroyed! Combat: Elita One strikes Shockwave with Gratuitious_Sabotage's Small Explosion #11150 Area attack! Combat: Used up 1 Grenades. 0 remain. Repugnus laughs as Shockwave lags behind. Alas, he may have laughed too loud and too long, for when he finally turns to leave, it's already too late, and fire spews down the tunnel right at the Monsterbot, engulfing him and flinging him across the battlefield! He lands on some dead Seeker's body a good distance away, and after he has a moment to recover, he sits up, rubs his head, and remarks, "Wow, second time this week I got blown up. I must be on a roll!" Combat: Repugnus takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Sky Lynx is shot! How dare that curr... The bullet, in almost true retaliatory fashion, lands a nice blow somewhere on his bulk and there's a quick flash of a warning or two across his optical visor. The dino-bird-cat cranes his head to look at the activity below concerning Elita One. <> Giving a curt nod in agreement at what he hears in response, he bellows out over the Autobot lines. "Pull back, reinforce our holding point! We've inflicted enough damage this day. Their 'Leader' has fled the battlefield!" He can't help the jab at the visibly absent Shockwave's expense before covering the line's retreat, strafing blast to help force the Decepticon line's heads down, more for show than actually targetted at a specific hostile. <> Combat: Sky Lynx takes extra time to steady himself. Pass As the forces slowly pull back from the field of battle, the second line of infantry does their best to snatch the dead and wounded from the fight; meanwhile the titan-class gumbies hold the line to protect them, though they themselves are slowly retreating backward. Red Alert barely has time to notice Boomslang making a target of him, narrowly avoiding the blast by diving behind Leviathan's shield. "Alright, that's it. First you ruin my disposition, then you shoot up my tank, now you're shooting me?" he grumbles, loading a clip into the Particle Beam Rifle. "A mech can only take SO much!" Quickly pulling back from the cover, the Security Director takes a couple of potshots in quick succession at Boomslang. Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Red Alert strikes F/A-18 Super Hornet with his Particle Pew Pew attack! -2 The explosion goes off, and the entire pipe rumbles and shakes violently. Shockwave doesn't have to perform any complicated calculations to know he isn't going to make it out in time. Cracks are already appearing above him, and he raises his arms over his head to protect himself before it all comes crashing down upon him, burying the Military Commander. "Whoah, incoming," Boomslang reports as particle beams punch holes through his left wing and horizontal stabilizer. He adjusts trim to account for it and pickles another bomb just before he passes over Red Alert, a general-purpose bomb this time, since Red Alert himself is the goal rather than area-denial. Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: F/A-18 Super Hornet strikes Red Alert with his Mk.82 GP Bomb attack! Fusillade frowns visibly as the ground shudders and smoke wafts from underground. "Hnn, not good," she hisses between gritted teeth, and makes a sweeping gesture. <> She kicks off, transforming again with a searing roar of engines to further harry Sky Lynx. Fusillade leans forward, wingblades whipping out to their full span, even as her arms lock backward in place as the rear fuselage. Her torso folds out to the become the cockpit of a Terran B-1B Lancer, ready for flight! Combat: Space Going B-1R Lancer strikes Sky Lynx with her Git' Along Lil' Doggie (Disruptor) attack! F-15 Streak Eagle was circyling around the anti air cannon and trying to assertain Shockwave's status when the order comes in. "With these archaic weapons we are outnumbered." he replies flatly. Combat: F-15 Streak Eagle takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Buzzkill has arrived. <> Fusillade spits in reply to Windshear. <> F-15 Streak Eagle gets a status on teh Squadren and wing overs to head back to their front post. Elita One pulls back to the Autobot lines, <> She shakes her head with a scowl, as she provides some cover fire for the retreating troops. <> She glances back to the fortifications, <> A note of annoyance graces her voice. <> Autobot Message: 3/123 Posted Author HOC:Magnaron Tue Apr 23 Elita One ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ AUTOBOT SPINNY Elita One appears on screen, slightly damaged, but its her demeanor that looks more damaged. "Operation at Magnaron was successful for the most part. Red Alert, Repugnus and Sky Lynx kept up the raid motif as the Titan class frontliners and myself went forward." She hesitates with a subdued scowl, "Shockwave was there unfortunately, and saw through the feint. If it weren't for Sky Lynx keeping him busy, the operation would've been a bust. Still, he's now going to suspect something, so we need to play our cards even closer to the lasercore, or the entire op will come down....Anyway, Windshear, Fusillade and Boomslang showed up as well, to which I pulled out an equalizer, an old anti-air cannon that Red Alert used to keep their attention. Minor injuries to report on our side, and most likely the same on the Con side as well. The distraction itself needs to be reevaluated." She looks offscreen for a moment, displeased. "Elita One out." AUTOBOT SPINNY.